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Xbox 360 (vs) Wii - Please help!

EvryDayImShufln

EvryDayImShufln

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Sep 18, 2006
1,094
1
Hey

I'm having a hell of a time deciding between the xbox 360 and the wii. This will essentially be the first console I ever own, and I will only get one and not both (so dont even try :p).

Here's what I see as pros and cons of both systems for my particular use:

Xbox 360:
+ amazing graphics
+ can stream stuff from computer to TV
+ xbox live is apparently amazing
+ hard drive option
+ HD capable
- accessories are RIDICULOUSLY overpriced - 130$ to get wireless???
- it's unreliable and overheats (although warranty is 3 years, which is nice)
- many of the games seem redundant, although that may be just my opinion considering I have barely played any X360 at all

Wii:
+ slightly cheaper
+ controllers are awesome
+ has many classic games such as zelda and mario (which I used to play on game boy and have always loved)
+ wireless built in
- no hard drive option
- multiplayer online no good? Not sure about this one
- cannot stream media to TV
- No HD!

Now I don't know if my pros and cons for both are accurate, nor if I missed any. Like if the Wii could stream media to TV and had great online gameplay capability, that would already put it up a couple of notches in my book. It's lack of high quality graphics, though, bothers me: is this really an issue? Does the Wii's output appear ugly and fuzzy?

For the Xbox 360, is the harddrive really that necessary? I don't want to lay down too much on this console and I find the premium set expensive for essentially a 20 gig hard drive, which doesn't even seem that big once put into perspective. Does the hard drive really do that much or is the Arcade Xbox 360 still ok as a purchase?

Thanks alot and any comments are appreciated!
 
Having an HD for the 360 is pretty necessary - its great downloading demos of games you're not sure about...

I definitely recommend the 360, as I personally can play on it for hours without getting bored, while the same is not true of the Wii...5 minutes of Wii is much more fun than 5 minutes of 360...
 
psychofreak said:
Having an HD for the 360 is pretty necessary - its great downloading demos of games you're not sure about...

I definitely recommend the 360, as I personally can play on it for hours without getting bored, while the same is not true of the Wii...5 minutes of Wii is much more fun than 5 minutes of 360...
Click to expand...

5 minutes of Wii is much more fun than 5 mins of 360 but you prefer the 360? Typo somewhere?

Thanks for your comment though, I guess for demos it could be pretty useful. Do you know if there's anywhere I can get a hard drive for it separately for cheaper than 100$ anyway?
 
I have both. The Wii is a totally different gaming experience. Its "fun" gaming vs "serious" gaming. The 360 is all serious.

The Wii is a blast with other people playing alongside. The 360 is unmatched when using XBox Live.

You may need to buy both. :D
 
f1400 said:
5 minutes of Wii is much more fun than 5 mins of 360 but you prefer the 360? Typo somewhere?
Click to expand...

i think he's trying to say that the wii can be really fun but for only five minutes at a time, that the 360 is better for extended gaming. though, i have to disagree with that. i got my system fairly recently, and every gaming session lasts for hours, whether it's playing a link to the past (vc zelda game) or super mario galaxy. i'm not big on first person shooters, and i can't really name a game that calls out to me on 360. when you're making this decision, though, don't look at the console's pluses and minuses. look at the game library. go where the games pique your interest.
 
Wii is awesome fornew comers to computer games, young and old. My Christmas Wii party starts in 10 minutes! Half the people coming have never played console games or only played the Wii.
 
The Wii is also awesome for peeps like me that have been gaming on PCs since the eighties. Its dedicated pointer is great for all of the PC game types that are just plain blah with a stiff-thumb-stick, so games like FPS and RTS to name the most popular. I also like that so many old school games that I loved when I was younger have started to make a come back with the Wii and DS here in the US -- and this is because of the controls. I loved graphic adventures when I was younger, so I was sad to see them pushed out when FPSs became so popular back in the mid nineties.

You can actually stream to the Wii via the opera browser. There are a few options now. Not saying it's as streamlined as a 360, but it works.
Here are a few quick searches:
http://wiihacks.blogspot.com/2006/12/wii-media-center-music-streaming.html
https://mycast.orb.com/orb/html/login.html
http://pcworld.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http://www.redkawa.com/mediacenters/

Online gaming is new, but it's FREE!! I like this since I've NEVER paid for an online service. Battle.net is free and it suits me fine. I don't WoW like some of my friends. :eek:

And HD gaming. Eh, if the game is fun, it doesn't matter. A good shader system, which the Wii has a GREAT one, can help to clean things up -- I'm not saying things will be as sharp, but they'll look good when the developer puts in the effort. Games like Metroid Prime look great! Unless you're going 1080p for HD, 720p is only marginally better than 480p when it comes down to it.

Coming from PC gaming, this so called HD gaming has mostly been an old boot and just like console gaming in general, it's still a lower rez -- my current screen is an Apple 30". I've never been wowed by its marketing fluff like some of the younger peeps here, who seem to have their gaming roots in the Saturn or PS2. For me it has been more of an eyesore for what I watch, since most things are still a work in progress.

<]=)
 
Wii. When you've got rating-tastic games like Mario Galaxy and Twilight Princess you can't go wrong :cool:

360's good and all but I fail to get excited about it. Halo 3 was Halo 3. All these other big games are nice and all but I've lost sleep due to Mario Galaxy. Maybe the 360 is less important to me as I play PC games.
 
Ok honestly after reading many of your replies (thanks alot btw!) I can come to these conclusions:

The xbox 360s extra features appeal alot to me, especially streaming movies from my pc and putting media on it (although a 20 gig hard drive may be a little small). That and the HD capability makes me more inclined to buy it over the wii.

If I were to look at the game selection, however, I have always been a fan of nintendo and I feel that "all first person shooters are the same". I honestly don't know if this is true and I imagine it isn't, considering how many people have a 360 and it seems that the majority of games on it are first person shooters.

Games like mario galaxy and zelda really do appeal to me alot. But also the wii has less games than the xbox 360.

It's a really tough decision and I can't go for both :p

I think it may come down to price: if I can get my local electronics store to price match dell's crazy xbox 360 boxing week special, I may have no choice but to pick it up. If there were some cool wii bundles though, I might go with it instead.

Maybe I'm thinking this over too much and I really can't go wrong with either one lol
 
f1400 said:
I think it may come down to price: if I can get my local electronics store to price match dell's crazy xbox 360 boxing week special, I may have no choice but to pick it up. If there were some cool wii bundles though, I might go with it instead.
Click to expand...


If it comes down to price, don't forget to factor in accessories and XBox Live.

1 XBox 360 + Wireless + 1 year of XBox Live = $350 + $99 + $50 = $500
(remember, you pay to play online)
1 Wii w/built in wireless + free online play + free game = $250

Also, the XBox 360's online play IS definitely better, but the Wii is a lot better for local multiplayer. The multiplayer games are a lot better. So if you play online, XBox Live has advantages, but if you like having friends over, the Wii is probably a better choice. Gaming has in recent years become more and more social for me (I almost play more with friends than alone) and that's been a big draw to the Wii for me (also, SMASH BROS SOON WHOO).

Personally, as someone who 1) Is tired of repetitious FPS and 2) Hates playing FPS with a joystick rather than a mouse, I find a lot more games appealing on the Wii than the 360.
 
Ok well I did buy a 360 since best buy was able to match dells deal (xbox + halo 3 for 369 as opposed to the xbox itself for 399 as best buy was selling).

I even got a falcon xbox 360.

I guess if I don't like this thing I'll just return it, but it looks pretty cool. I'll figure out something to do about the wireless lol
 
tell me how you like it.

i have been a bit of a nintendo fanboy, only straying to PS2 for DDR.
anyways, I prefer my wii way more than my bros 360, because i love just sitting down and playing a simple game without worrying about much, but if you want that you can play super paper mario ;)
 
I own both. As others have said, they are two very different, but GREAT gaming experiences. To be honest, I don't like either more than the other. Each has strengths and weaknesses, and each is fun.

Ok, I know you said not to, but I have to say you have to have both, LOL. If you HAVE to chose just one, for now, I would say go 360 if your into more hard core gaming. Go Wii, if your into a very "classic" feel, with TONS of fun same room multiplayer. I would hate to have to make the decision now. Matter of fact, I'm trying to decide NOT to buy a PS3 on the cost of it as a Blue Ray player alone, LOL.
 
I did not read the above posts but my thoughts are this.
360 = more involved games that you can spend hours playing.
Wii = a lot less involved games that you can spend equal hours playing but you don't buy a Wii for the "strategy" games or FPS type games. I think the Wii is great for people who enjoy some semi-active play (if your ass isn't planted on the couch). I had a 360 in the house, not the case now. I bought a Wii while the 360 was here. I found myself on the Wii more because a full time job + full time work = less play time. I could play for 10 min and be done. No need to be concerned with ranking points, xbox live, medals, etc. But the 360 was great for games like COD4, Halo etc.

This is the point where I tell you that having both will be great but I would venture to guess the Wii will get less play time unless you entertain a lot.
 
Both have their pros and cons.

I love my 360 and play it on a daily basis, meanwhile I haven't played my Wii in several months. Hell the only reason I powered it on the other day was to change my wireless settings.

I'm bored with the Wii and really none of the new games have been "must own" to me or on the level of "holy crap I have to drop everything I'm doing and buy this game at once!". I've had a lot more enjoyment out of my 360 than I have my Wii (especially since getting Xbox Live gold again).

Both systems will give you enjoyment; in my case though, the 360 is still enjoyable whereas the Wii really isn't. :( I'm not going to outright call the Wii a 'fad' system like many other people do, but I will say that as of right now - the appeal of the Wii has worn off and I really have no desire to play it anymore. (I'm surprised we haven't sold it yet.)
 
If I could only go with one I'd go with a Wii, Super Mario Galaxy is an amazing game and the graphics definitely show the Wii is MUCH more powerful than an Xbox1. There is also Twilight Princess, Trauma Center (which I've found to be extremely addicting on the DS), Metroid Primer 3, Zack & Wiki and of course the upcoming Smash Bros Brawl and Mario Kart Wii.

The 360 is nice too but it's trying way too darn hard to be a Gaming PC what with all the shooters and the HD craze but it's also a good choice especially if you like playing online and a Gaming PC is out of the question.
 
I basically second most of what's said here. The Wii's local multiplayer and fun-factor in short bursts of gameplay are unparalleled. The 360 is for more hardcore (domestic) gaming types.

That being said, Super Mario Galaxy is insanely good, Twilight Princess is quite fun, and I've got Zack and Wiki in the mail. I think I've had more outright *fun* on the Wii than either of the other current consoles, but it does tend to occur in shorter intervals. My longest (solo) marathon sessions have been on the 360. The best multiplayer has been on the Wii.
 
As stated the wii is more for the multiplayer mini game types....the fun factor is high with friends etc...but if you don't have a lot of friends over then the fun factor goes down to normal.

Xbox360 is fun(with or without friends)....online is great. If you are into FPS/Racing games then the 360 is the console for you but if you are only looking for short burst of fun then the wii is very much it.

Single player games on the wii that are worth your time: Mario Galaxy, MP: C, LoZ:TP,


Bless
 
I've had both and I have to say that I've had far more fun on the Wii and played it a stack more then when I had a 360. But in saying that, I am not really a hardcore gamer and am a huge fan of anything to do with Mario :D
 
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